Our 'fifth meeting' of the month was held this week for the first time in rooms at Vision Australia. This is a wonderful venue. While attendance was modest, the 'fifth meeting' has proven to be a rich source of new members for the Club. Guest speaker at the meeting, Andrew Donald (right), spoke of his ‘accidental’ and varied working history across many countries and cultures. Amongst the many messages woven throughout his talk he argued that many beliefs held and promulgated about Chinese culture in the West are ill-informed and the only way to know a culture is to become immersed in it. Anfrew also drew attention to the insights into the values of a culture evident in the language of that culture. Exemplifying this notion, he referenced the specific words for family members in Mandarin and how both the importance of family and the conception of family in Chinese culture is fundamentally different from that in the west. Understanding the reality and deeply entrenched differences in cultures and appreciating that no culture has a monopoly on the meaning of what is ultimately right and wrong, good and bad, remain as important in today’s globalised world as they have ever been; especially if we are to work in harmony and avoid armed conflict.

Now to Hawthorn Rotary business. Early in the year, I opened with the words that we are a ‘happy team at Hawthorn’. As I look ahead over the next weeks and months, we will be a ‘busy team at Hawthorn’. All-hands-on-deck will be required to complete the many activities planned leading into Christmas.

A happy group at "home-hosting" chez Bentley.

On Friday 20 October at 9:00 am we have both a working bee repacking a considerable amount of valuable recycled medical equipment into a container being purchased by the Club. Please support David Rush by responding to his request for assistance. The Monday after next (29 October) sees the Club host the CHANCES golf day. The number of participants for this event has grown and the day looks like it will be a great success. These activities will be followed soon by the Garden Design Fest and Paris to Provence parking fundraisers, the RYLA dinner and BBQ and the Christmas Community Lunch. The Christmas puddings and hams flyers are being distributed. Let’s see if we can spread them to an even broader market this year and boost the income from one of our central fundraising projects. Much of the work so far this Rotary year has been done by a small number of members; it is now time for everyone to step up and make a combined Hawthorn effort to ensure these projects are not only successful but also that we support those organising them.

Finally, a plug for members to make sure they attend next week’s meeting. While the rest of 2018 will be frantic, projects in 2019 are sparse, and it is essential that we have as many members at the AGM and associated Forum next Tuesday to discuss the future of our Club for the rest of this Rotary year and in the years ahead. The Club has some crucial matters to consider as we plan our way forward.

John Botham spent a career in the RAF and with the Civil Aviation Safety Authority before developing an interest in early Victorian history. He assisted with the production of La Trobe’s Jolimont, A walk round my garden (2006) and worked tirelessly thereafter to develop an understanding amongst government and the public of the heritage importance of the La Trobe’s Cottage.

John told us that Captain George Ward Cole arrived in Melbourne in 1840 following a career in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, including the sacking of Washington, and in the merchant marine. He was prominent in early Melbourne society, marrying into the McCrae family and building one of the first houses in Brighton, St Ninian’s, where Edward La Trobe Bateman worked on the garden.

Cole built the first private wharf on the bank of the Yarra, known as Cole’s Wharf and developed shipping facilities in Port Phillip, providing sea transport both locally and to other colonies. He was however the victim of sovereign risk, when changing govermnments imposed different rules and wharfage costs. He conducted a long campaign for compensation, or for the government to buy the wharf, but it was not until 1868 that the government bought his wharf for £19,000, a fraction of the initial construction costs and the lost income due to governments changing the rules.

He served on the Legislative Council for 20 years.

Although Cole had seven children, none married and his memory died out with them. John Botham’s talk gave us the opportunity to rediscover this virtually forgotten patriarch of early Melbourne.

We heard the story of his life in early Melbourne, his entrepreneurial activities and work as a respected politician in amazing dertail.

Celebrated physicist Isaac Newton had a chequered career as a monetary mandarin and investor.

As Master of the Royal Mint, he helped reform England's currency, the pound sterling, clamped down on counterfeiting and, in 1717, accidentally moved Britain to its first ever gold standard.

His record as an investor, however, wasn't quite so illustrious. Newton lost a fortune — around 20,000 pounds — in one of history's most notorious market collapses, the South Sea Bubble, when the South Sea Company, primarily a slave trader, collapsed in 1720.

If only he'd remembered his early work as a physicist and applied his revolutionary theories on gravity to markets.

In an eerie parallel, Australian real estate, particularly in Sydney and Melbourne, now appears to be succumbing to Newton's third law; that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

What goes up, must come down.

Last week, Sydney's property market experienced its 12th straight month of declines while falls in Melbourne accelerated, sparked a flurry of warnings of impending doom.

The Shadow knows you are a clever bunch of little Vegemites, but some of you had to ask what time the cluster meeting on 27th November would be. Richard Blakeman has confirmed that it is at Glenferrie Rotary's normal meeting time, 6.30 for 7.00pm. The Hon Ted Bailleau, on Sir John Monash - His Life And Legacy . Bookings at www.trybooking.com/428136

The home hosting dinners obviously went well, judging by this candid snapshot. Details are sketchy, but The Shadow heard that several stretcher bearers were required.

But where? At Ngaire and Ralph's place, of course.

There is a prize for the best yarn told on the evening, but these are the best so far . . . .

Did you hear about the cannibal who came home late for dinner?His wife gave him the cold shoulder.

Q: Why do they only eat one egg for breakfast in France?A: Because in France, one egg is an oeuf.

Q: Why do watermelons have fancy weddings?A: Because they cantaloupe.

Two cannibals were eating a clown.One turned to the other and said “This tastes funny!”

Did you hear about the new restaurant in outer space?The food is great but there’s no atmosphere.

Two peanuts walk into a bar.One was a salted.

Bill Troedel reports:

Son Alastair caught up with little Flo ( exchange student 1993-94) in Munich today with Flo’s parents . I thought that if there is space it could go in the Bulletin.

'This is the remarkable story of Tulloch, the virtually unwanted yearling who rose to greatness with the support of Australia’s most flamboyant trainer and a contrasting dogged owner, who often clashed about what was best for their horse.

It’s a story about the characters behind the scenes—his trainer, the legendary Tommy Smith, his owner Evelyn Haley, the jockeys, such as George Moore and Neville Sellwood, who rode him and the his strapper and track rider, Lem Bann, a song ’n dance man who whistled his way into Tulloch’s heart'

Chair: David Rush

Nov 06, 2018

Cup Day Holiday - No meeting

Nov 13, 2018 - Rosemary Johns

As Told by the Boys Who Fed Me Apples: Sandy was the only Australian War Horse to return home from World War I. This is his poignant and fragmented war story. Through Sandy we experience the lives of three men who fought in the war.

Kim D'Arcy always seeks to finalize numbers by Monday 8.30am by collating responses about attendance at the next meeting. So please try to email back to her by that time; and, at the same time, forewarn of any guests. (Predicting our numbers as closely as possible helps to minimize our catering costs.) kimcco@tpg.com.au